Georgia reported an increase in new jobless claims filed last week, a signal that the state’s economic recovery may face more speed bumps as COVID-19 cases rise.
The Georgia Department of Labor processed 29,088 initial jobless claims for the week ending Nov. 21, up 48% from the previous week. That reversed a five-week trend of improvement in new jobless claims, although the latest tally remained much lower than earlier during the pandemic.
Georgia’s performance mirrored the rise in new jobless claims on a national level, where 778,000 people applied for unemployment benefits last week, a 4% increase from a week earlier.
It was the first time that new jobless claims nationally increased for two consecutive weeks since July, which was also the last time the U.S. saw a spike in COVID-19 cases.
Georgia remained in the coronavirus “red zone” for the third straight week, according to the latest White House Coronavirus Task Force report issued last Sunday, and the seven-day rolling average of confirmed cases has more than doubled since early October.
Meanwhile, metro Atlanta’s unemployment rate for October dropped to 6.6% from 8.5% in September, the Labor Department said Thursday. Metro Atlanta added 86,073 jobs during the month.
The number of job openings statewide rose 5% to 168,000 compared to the previous week, according to online job postings at EmployGeorgia.
About the Author
